developing playershttp://www.usahockeymagazine.com/taxonomy/term/950/all
enDeveloping Hockey Sense In A Fun And Competitive Environmenthttp://www.usahockeymagazine.com/article/developing-hockey-sense-fun-and-competitive-environment
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By:&nbsp;</div>
<a href="/author/roger-grillo">Roger Grillo</a> </div>
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<p>Developing hockey sense is as important as learning how to skate or stickhandle. Taking a large percentage of your practice time to create an environment that puts your players in situations where they have to make good, sound hockey decisions over and over again is the only way to allow the critical skill of decision making to take place.</p>
<p>Here are several small area games that will help players &ldquo;train the brain&rdquo; in a fun and competitive environment.</p>
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<h3>Team knockout<span class="inline inline-right"><img src="http://usahockeymagazine.com/sites/default/files/images/ADMknockout.img_assist_custom-280x227.jpg" alt="" title="" class="image image-img_assist_custom-280x227 " width="280" height="227" /></span></h3>
<p><strong>Age Level:</strong> For players of all ages<br /><strong></strong></p>
<p><strong>Purpose:</strong> Focuses on stick handling, puck possession, body contact and keeping your head up while controlling the puck.<br /><strong></strong></p>
<p><strong>Game:</strong> Split your group into two teams and have them play in a designated area. The fewer the players per team the smaller the area.</p>
<p>One team has pucks, the other does not. On the whistle the non-puck carrying team must take the pucks away from players on the team and put the pucks over a line or in a net.</p>
<p>The coach counts to see how long it takes the non-puck carrying team to remove all the pucks from the puck carrying team. The roles are then reversed and time is kept again. The team with the quickest time wins the game.</p>
<p>The goal is to keep control of your puck as long as you can. Once your puck is lost you must help your teammates by supporting and passing.</p>
<h3><span class="inline inline-none"><img src="http://usahockeymagazine.com/sites/default/files/images/ADMbreakout.jpg" alt="" title="" class="image image-_original " width="525" height="421" /></span></h3>
<h3>Breakout Vs. Forecheck Game</h3>
<p><strong>Age Level: </strong>For Squirts and up <br /><strong></strong></p>
<p><strong>Purpose:</strong> This game works on breakouts, transition, man-on-man defensive concepts, puck possession and support and play off the puck. With the progression you can add a forechecking concept.<br /><strong></strong></p>
<p><strong>Game:</strong> Split your group into two teams. Also split the zone into defensive and offensive halves.<br />Throw a puck into play and on every transition in the defensive half the two offensive players must go back across the center line and the two defenders must make at least one pass in their half before they can attack the offensive zone. This forces the defenders to make a good breakout play without pressure in order to create a scoring chance.</p>
<p>On every transition the defenders must make at least one pass and the offensive players must retreat to their half to wait for the attack of the opposing two players.&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br /><strong></strong></p>
<p><strong>Progression:</strong> After the players understand the concept of the game and the purpose of a good breakout, allow one of the two original offensive players to stay in their offensive half and forecheck the puck. This will force the two defenders to support and execute a clean breakout play. If they do it well they should get an odd-man rush into the offensive half. If the forechecking player gains control then his teammate can come back into the offensive half for support.</p>
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<h3>1v1/2v1 Possession Low Game<span class="inline inline-right"><img src="http://usahockeymagazine.com/sites/default/files/images/ADM1v1.img_assist_custom-280x217.jpg" alt="" title="" class="image image-img_assist_custom-280x217 " width="280" height="217" /></span></h3>
<p><strong>Ages:</strong> For Squirts and up<br /><strong></strong></p>
<p><strong>Purpose:</strong> This game works on puck possession, body contact, communication, support, defensive concepts and transition from 1-on-1 to 2-on-1, and offensive concepts of cycling and getting to the net front.<br /><strong></strong></p>
<p><strong>Game:</strong> Form two lines. The first player in the line on one side of the coach is on offense and the first player from the other line is on defense. The coach lets the 1-on-1 play out for about 5 seconds. If the offensive player has done a good job of puck possession the coach sends in the second player from the offensive line and they now play 2-on-1 trying to work the puck to the net for a scoring chance.</p>
<p>Let this play out until a goal is scored or the defender gets the puck to the coach or about 20 seconds.</p>
<p>If it goes the 20 seconds then the coach blows the whistle and the three players that are in the drill sprint to the near blue line and the coach starts over by putting the puck in the other corner and playing 1-on-1 to 2-on-1.</p>
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<h6><em>ILLUSTRATIONS by Mike Curti</em><br /></h6>
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http://www.usahockeymagazine.com/article/developing-hockey-sense-fun-and-competitive-environment#commentsadmdeveloping playerspracticeSmall Area GamesFeatureFri, 02 Nov 2012 15:23:07 +0000admin7583 at http://www.usahockeymagazine.comOpportunity Knocks At Revamped Camps: New player development campshttp://www.usahockeymagazine.com/article/2012-09/opportunity-knocks-revamped-camps-new-player-development-camps
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New Format Allows More Players To Train And Develop At Multi-District Camps </div>
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By:&nbsp;</div>
<a href="/author/justin-felisko">Justin Felisko</a> </div>
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<p><strong><span class="inline inline-none"><img src="http://www.usahockeymagazine.com/sites/default/files/images/OpportunityKnocks.jpg" alt="Yale University Associate Head Coach Red Gendron addresses campers at the Centennial Sportsplex in Nashville, Tenn." title="Yale University Associate Head Coach Red Gendron addresses campers at the Centennial Sportsplex in Nashville, Tenn." class="image image-_original " width="525" height="348" /><span class="caption" style="width: 523px;">Yale University Associate Head Coach Red Gendron addresses campers at the Centennial Sportsplex in Nashville, Tenn.</span></span></strong></p>
<p>As Tom Lampl looked onto the ice at Colorado College he didn&rsquo;t just see budding young hockey players participating in a USA Hockey development camp. What he really saw was opportunity.</p>
<p>There were other noticeable differences as well, such as 14-year-old boys who were already shaving and others who had never used a razor before. There were players towering over 6-feet tall competing against others who only barely crossed the 5-foot threshold.</p>
<p>As parents know all too well, kids develop at different rates. Some are late bloomers with delayed growth spurts. Others shoot up early and then struggle to grow into their bodies. And still others simply choose to stop playing hockey or do not develop any further.</p>
<p>Like the other coaches at the Western Regional Multi-District High Performance Boys Select 14 Camp, Lampl, the Rocky Mountain District associate coach in chief, had no idea who among the 180 campers would become the next big star at an age where puberty hasn't yet run its course.</p>
<p>It is an issue USA Hockey has been grappling with for as long as it has held its annual player development camps. Over the years the organization&rsquo;s player development committee has noticed a dramatic turnover by the time an age group matriculated through the program.</p>
<p>&ldquo;The evidence was that 75 percent of the kids that participated in the 14 Camp weren&rsquo;t showing up at the 17 Camp,&rdquo; said Kevin McLaughlin, USA Hockey&rsquo;s senior director of Hockey Development. &ldquo;They weren&rsquo;t the same kids.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Lampl was not surprised by the data compiled by USA Hockey. He&rsquo;s been tracking the Rocky Mountain District kids for 13 years, and this year only 50 percent of those the District sent to last year&rsquo;s 14 national camp returned for the 15 camp.</p>
<p>&ldquo;I think that just tells you we were narrowing the pyramid too soon and that we needed to broaden the base,&rdquo; Lampl said. &ldquo;This camp is a step in the right direction.&rdquo;</p>
<p><strong><span class="inline inline-none"><img src="http://www.usahockeymagazine.com/sites/default/files/images/OpportunityKnocks2_0.jpg" alt="By giving more kids the opportunity to attend player development camps close to home, USA Hockey is looking to develop more high-level players in the future." title="By giving more kids the opportunity to attend player development camps close to home, USA Hockey is looking to develop more high-level players in the future." class="image image-_original " width="525" height="368" /><span class="caption" style="width: 523px;">By giving more kids the opportunity to attend player development camps close to home, USA Hockey is looking to develop more high-level players in the future.</span></span></strong></p>
<p>One of many examples of that is recent Los Angeles King&rsquo;s Stanley Cup champion Trevor Lewis. The Salt Lake City native who scored two goals during the Stanley Cup Finals never made it to a National Select Camp until he was 17.</p>
<p>That&rsquo;s why many in the player development community felt it was better to be inclusive than exclusive. So they dropped the five-day national camp that catered to 180 14-year-olds and replaced it with a series of regional development camps that can impact &ldquo;roughly 1,200 kids.&rdquo;</p>
<p>&ldquo;We wanted to expose more kids to the development that happens at the 14 national camp,&rdquo; McLaughlin said. &ldquo;That way we can throw a broader blanket over more kids at a younger age so that the ones that do actually end up at the 17 camp have had three years of coaching and exposure to age-appropriate development.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Yale Associate Head Coach Red Gendron, one of many high-level coaches at this year&rsquo;s Southeast District camp, said the lessons the kids learn at camp about teamwork and discipline will be qualities they take with them for the rest of their lives.</p>
<p>&ldquo;To have these kind of camps at every District of USA Hockey is extremely beneficial to the players,&rdquo; Gendron said. &ldquo;It gives more kids an opportunity to be a part of the whole pyramid of USA Hockey&rsquo;s player development.&rdquo;&nbsp;</p>
<p>Joe Doyle, a regional manager of the American <strong><span class="inline inline-right"><img src="http://www.usahockeymagazine.com/sites/default/files/images/OpportunityKnocks3.img_assist_custom-263x396.jpg" alt="Top coaches from around the country were able to work with more kids at these revamped camps." title="Top coaches from around the country were able to work with more kids at these revamped camps." class="image image-img_assist_custom-263x396 " width="263" height="395" /><span class="caption" style="width: 261px;">Top coaches from around the country were able to work with more kids at these revamped camps.</span></span></strong>Development Model, said the main component of the newly-designed Select 14 camps is that Districts can duplicate the curriculum of the national camps at a local level, which saves time, money and impacts more players.</p>
<p>&ldquo;These camps have more to do with&nbsp; training and development than it has to do with evaluating players,&rdquo; Doyle said.</p>
<p>&ldquo;We are hoping to plant the seeds of knowledge and those who are truly hungry and want to get after it can do that on their own. That way,&nbsp; by the time they&rsquo;re 16, 17, or 18, it will have a real impact on their game.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Each regional select camp featured on-ice and off-ice training sessions, as well as seminars dealing with important topics ranging from nutrition and strength/conditioning to opportunities in hockey. All seminars were open to parents.</p>
<p>Griffin Clark, who attended the Southeast District Select 14 camp in Nashville, said the off-ice seminars were his favorite part of the camp.</p>
<p>&ldquo;The seminars have been a highlight [of the week],&rdquo; the Charlotte, N.C. native said. &ldquo;They taught me a lot of things, not just about hockey but about life. They taught me how to be an organized individual, how to never give up [and] perseverance.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Hugo Cordova has two 20-year-old twin boys that never got invited to a national camp. So to have his youngest son qualify for the new version of the Southeast District camp was a humbling and rewarding experience.</p>
<p>&ldquo;The intensity on the ice and the bonding these kids experience is great,&rdquo; Cordova said. &ldquo;Every child needs to experience this camp because if they really want to play in the future these camps [will] really help them out.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Josh Morrison, who played &ldquo;A&rdquo; hockey last season for San Diego Ice Arena, enjoyed his time at the Western Regional Multi-District High Performance Boys Select 14 Camp, which included players from the Rocky Mountain, Northern Plains and Pacific Districts. It was not only an opportunity for players to see what they need to work on to continue their development but also to make new friendships with other young skaters from other states.</p>
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<h2 class="textlinkblack">&ldquo;The intensity <br />on the ice and <br />the bonding these kids experience is great.&rdquo;<br />&mdash; Hugo Cordova, hockey dad<br /></h2>
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<p>&ldquo;It was nice coming out of California and seeing new coaches,&rdquo; Morrison said. &ldquo;They teach you different things and I learned new things. It was a good experience.&rdquo;</p>
<p>Morrison&rsquo;s father, William, also appreciated the opportunity for his son and other players from non-traditional areas to learn from some of the top coaches in the country.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Just making it through the process we were on cloud nine. It has opened so many doors that we didn&rsquo;t even know were there,&rdquo; Morrison said.</p>
<p>&ldquo;You&rsquo;re talking about a kid who isn&rsquo;t mainstream. We&rsquo;re from San Diego. If it was the old [way] Josh probably would not have made the cut.&rdquo;</p>
<p>The way that USA Hockey sees it, the change is really addition by subtraction as the new format provides even greater opportunities for a larger base of players who have not even scratched the surface of their full potential.</p>
<p>&ldquo;By USA Hockey eliminating the 14 camp they didn&rsquo;t eliminate the 14 camp,&rdquo; Lampl said. &ldquo;They created opportunities for 800 more additional kids.&rdquo;</p>
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<h6><em><br /></em></h6>
<h6><em>Photos By Cory Portner and Donn Jones </em><br /></h6>
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<a href="/issue/2012-09">2012-09</a> </div>
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http://www.usahockeymagazine.com/article/2012-09/opportunity-knocks-revamped-camps-new-player-development-camps#commentscampdeveloping playersyouth hockeyFeatureTue, 04 Sep 2012 21:31:00 +0000admin7323 at http://www.usahockeymagazine.comSystem Overloadhttp://www.usahockeymagazine.com/article/2012-04/system-overload
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Teaching Proper Habits Rather Than Systems Can Be An Effective Path To Higher Learning For Players Of All Ages </div>
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By:&nbsp;</div>
<a href="/author/guy-gadowsky">Guy Gadowsky</a> </div>
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<p><span class="inline inline-none"><img src="http://www.usahockeymagazine.com/sites/default/files/images/systemoverload1.jpg" alt="" title="" class="image image-_original " width="525" height="339" /></span></p>
<p>There is no one right way to coach a hockey team, and no one right way to run a practice. Many successful coaches have different philosophies and teaching styles that have served them well.</p>
<p>However, when it comes to practice, there is a philosophy that I feel strongly about for any coach responsible for developing players. That is to teach habits and not systems.</p>
<p>This is not to say that teams should not have systems; most teams do. However, the majority of practice time should not be spent on system repetition, but rather concentrating on the habits (or individual tactics) that are important for that system to be correctly executed. Generally, those same habits will apply to most systems.</p>
<p>Teaching habits will prove effective for all areas of team play, including special teams, defensive zone play, forechecking, breakouts and attack formations. I believe this philosophy applies to all levels as well.</p>
<p>Dave Allison, a coach who had a big influence on me, made accurate predictions on which players would make successful transitions to the NHL based not on their scoring statistics or physical size, but on their sound habits.</p>
<p>For youth players, developing good habits is vital. As basic fundamentals of skating and puckhandling are prerequisites to individual offensive skills, developing good habits is a prerequisite of team play and will accelerate the player&rsquo;s understanding of any system.</p>
<p>We don&rsquo;t practice line rushes before we are competent skaters and can handle a puck, nor should we practice team systems before we are well versed&nbsp;&nbsp; at the components (habits) of those systems.<br />Using breakouts as an example, basic habits that we work on regularly are: </p>
<p><strong><span class="inline inline-right"><img src="http://www.usahockeymagazine.com/sites/default/files/images/systemoverload2.img_assist_custom-280x343.jpg" alt="" title="" class="image image-img_assist_custom-280x343 " width="280" height="343" /></span>Defensemen:</strong> Skating back for the puck, looking over your shoulder to see where pressure is coming from, getting the puck quickly on your forehand and making a quick, flat, tape-to-tape pass.</p>
<p><strong>Wingers:</strong> Posting up (making yourself a good outlet), facing the puck with forward momentum, stick on the ice, supporting the puck with timing, and presenting a good target.&nbsp;&nbsp; </p>
<p><strong>Centermen:</strong> Controlled skating and timing to support the puck with an excellent target and knowledge (vision) of where pressure is coming from.</p>
<p>All of those habits are used in nearly every breakout. You do not have to practice breakouts to practice components or habits. By practicing the components, and not the specific breakout itself, players are practicing the skills used in several different breakout situations.</p>
<p>It is easy to incorporate forwards posting up with forward momentum in a large variety of drills where the main focus may be line rushes, attacking the offensive zone or just warming up the goalie. Any passing drill can easily emphasize timing support with a good target.</p>
<p>The same goes for a defenseman's habits of looking over his or her shoulder and quickly getting the puck on the forehand (surrounding the puck). This habit is easily integrated in a variety of drills.</p>
<p>It is possible to work on the components of breakouts in every drill in a particular practice and not actually perform one breakout. This means that valuable ice time can be used for drills focusing on skill development through fun, competitive drills instead of monotonous system repetition.</p>
<p>It is painful to see youth teams with limited ice time stand around and watch their coach draw breakouts on the rink board and then spend more time standing around watching one line at a time slowly execute a controlled breakout to the coach&rsquo;s specifications.</p>
<p>In game situations, even at highest levels, set breakouts occur infrequently compared to the number of times players are required to use habits outside of set plays.</p>
<p><strong><span class="inline inline-none"><img src="http://www.usahockeymagazine.com/sites/default/files/images/systemoverload3.jpg" alt="Coaches should plan practices that allow players to work on basic skills through a series of fun and competitive drills without pre-determined outcomes." title="Coaches should plan practices that allow players to work on basic skills through a series of fun and competitive drills without pre-determined outcomes." class="image image-_original " width="525" height="327" /><span class="caption" style="width: 523px;">Coaches should plan practices that allow players to work on basic skills through a series of fun and competitive drills without pre-determined outcomes.</span></span></strong></p>
<p>To prove this, next time you watch an NHL game, count the number of situations where a team has a player stride for the puck and has the option of hitting a posting forward with support.&nbsp; I have seen several college and NHL games where these habits are displayed in excess of 10 times between the two teams in just one shift, as compared to the number of set breakout plays that are used.</p>
<p>A specific set breakout won&rsquo;t occur as many as 10 times in an entire game. It makes much more sense to practice areas of the game that occur most often. You don&rsquo;t want to practice set outcomes. You want to practice reading, reacting and creating.</p>
<p>Coaches should plan practices with variety and flow. Let the kids practice skills and habits in fun, competitive drills. They will enjoy practice and be better off for it in the future.</p>
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<h5><em>Guy Gadowsky is the head coach of the Penn State University non-varsity team. Next season, the Nittany Lions will become a Div. I independent program and will skate out of the Big Ten Hockey Conference beginning in the 2013-14 season.</em></h5>
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<h6><em>Photos courtesy of USA Hockey</em><br /></h6>
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Issue:&nbsp;</div>
<a href="/issue/2012-04">2012-04</a> </div>
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http://www.usahockeymagazine.com/article/2012-04/system-overload#commentscoachingdeveloping playerslearningFeatureThu, 29 Mar 2012 20:36:50 +0000admin6791 at http://www.usahockeymagazine.com